#did i just go full unnecessary tangent

[elizmanderson]

Hi again. You made a few posts about first drafts being ridiculous and cleaning them up later. And I desperately need more writers talking about the writing process as they are writing it (like 'making of' posts/ videos, any creator who does those gets me obsessed with them)

Anywho, I was wondering how your revision process looks? How different is your first draft from your last and how did you make the decisions of what to cut vs what to expand on?

I know for myself, my MC is a constant-overthinker and all of faer POV is stream-of-consciousness, and fae goes on a LOT of unnecessary but characterizing tangents that I don't know how to work with, given the corner I wrote myself into.

TLDR - Any info about your revision process would be much appreciated.

Thanks :)

hello and thanks for asking!

first of all, in case anyone is curious about the original post, it's here. also, there are many ridiculous things in this draft of NettieWIP, but that post was brought to you specifically by this line that I wrote even though it's completely tonally wrong for both this book and this character lmao

okay, revisions. this is gonna get long, but I'm breaking it up into sections that will hopefully be helpful.

general process

so the first thing is, my revision process and how much I cut or add is different for every project. but here are some general principles I follow. keep in mind that ymmv with any and all of these! you have to find what works for you. this is just what works for me.

1. finish the draft first

I will never finish a draft if I'm focused on editing while I go. I've been hardcore resisting with NettieWIP because I keep having ideas about how to make it better mid-draft. but I know if I don't finish the draft as-is, it's not going to get done.

2. let it breathe before diving in

sometimes I have the urge to rush right into revisions after finishing a draft, but I do force myself to wait at least a month or two before returning to it. it gives me the emotional distance I need to be able to make decisions about what to cut, no matter how much I like things that don't serve the story.

(again going to have to fight this urge hard with NettieWIP in particular lol)

3. read it before diving in

the one thing that stays consistent from project to project is that I always do a full readthrough before I start revising. highly, highly recommend this regardless of what else works for you! reading through my entire manuscript gives me a big-picture view of the whole story and how all the parts work together (or not), as well as what the problems are.

note: when I do my readthrough, while I do make general notes of my thoughts, I do NOT focus on line-level details or edits. which brings us to...

4. fix big things first

okay jk actually this stays consistent from project to project, too. when approaching revisions, I always start with the biggest changes and work my way down. line edits are the last thing I do, because I figure it wastes my time and energy otherwise. what if I put all this energy into line edits or scene-level changes only to cut half those lines or scenes later when I make structural changes?

5. this is the time to plan!

I'm a plantser, which is somewhere halfway between a plotter and a pantser. while the amount of planning I do before a first draft varies, I always dedicate time to planning before revising. the exact process varies, but it's kinda like this.

read the entire manuscript, making note of plot holes and problem areas

brainstorm potential fixes and where they might fit in

write an outline, synopsis, chapter map, whatever (for me it's usually either a synopsis or chapter map because I simply cannot with outlines)

6. start rewriting

...and as discussed in a different post earlier, I always start the new draft in a new document! you never know when something from an earlier draft could come in handy.

7. use beta readers

I typically do a second draft on my own, because I typically have at least some idea of what needs fixing when I'm done with a first draft. I bring beta readers in once I hit the point where the story's cohesive but I know more work needs to be done, but I'm not sure what that work is.

you specifically asked how I decide what to cut vs. what to expand on, and beta readers are one important way—especially for what to expand on. while I have a habit of overexplaining in many areas, things in my head frequently fail to make it onto the page.

(I think this is because things are obvious to me bc I thought them up. but readers cannot see inside my head, so they may be confused or think a character or plot point is underdeveloped even though I have a lot more information about it mapped out internally.)

if readers feel like information is unnecessary or overexplained or like I'm patronizing them, that's a potential area for cutting. if readers are confused, lack insight, or feel like a reveal came out of nowhere, that's a potential area for expanding. that said...

parsing beta feedback

while outside feedback is important, it's at least equally important to be able to decide what feedback to listen to and what feedback to ignore! not all feedback is good feedback. and even feedback that's technically good may not be good feedback for your story.

for example, I had feedback on the manuscript that's now on sub that was drastically different than the rest of the feedback I received on that same manuscript. I love the beta who gave it to me and I respect their opinion a lot, so I took this feedback seriously. but I couldn't make it work, felt deeply frustrated, and spiraled a bit over my ability to write a book even though it was far from my first.

then I got into Author Mentor Match which I applied to mostly because I need some guidance re: this feedback. my mentor basically said, "I think this is good feedback, but I think it would change this book into a pacier, more action-packed book. and I don't think that's the kind of story you're trying to tell."

and my mentor was right! I think this friend and I are simply interested in different kinds of stories. so as much as they love my stories and as great as they are at giving feedback, their feedback may not be a good fit for me.

usually, I like to look at patterns of feedback.* the more readers agree that a plot point is weak or a reveal doesn't have enough build-up, the more likely it is that I really do need to worry about that.

BUT if a single reader's feedback makes me go oh and I really vibe with it, that's also good feedback to listen to! as long as you know what the heart of your story is, you can follow feedback that helps your story do more of what you want it to do and do it more effectively.

*in my experience, patterns are most helpful when your readers share aspects of your identity. for example, I'm neurodivergent and queer. when most of my readers were neurotypical and straight, I'd get told "this doesn't make sense" "no one thinks/feels like that" "this is unrealistic." and I'd be told that by multiple readers, so I'd decide that meant I had to change the story, even though something deep down told me I was wrong about that, that my betas were wrong about that.

now, most of my readers are neurodivergent and/or queer, so they understand when my characters do or think or feel certain things. and at the very least, they never tell me a character is being "unrealistic" or assume that characters' feelings aren't based on things I have really felt. so particularly for marginalized creators, patterns of feedback may NOT be helpful if your readers do not share your marginalization.

examples of changes to my drafts

cutting and combining

The Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher was drafted over a year and a half as part of a last man standing-style writing challenge, so the first draft was 160,000 words. it was pretty obvious I'd have to cut SOMETHING, since I was planning on querying agents.

(recommended for adult fantasy if you're seeking trad pub as a debut author: 120k max word count. better to be lower if you're writing contemporary fantasy, while you can be on the high end if you're writing epic fantasy. other subgenres may fall in between.)

I cut...a lot, in some cases through actually cutting while in other cases combining things. for example, there's a scene now where a dragon attacks Detroit while Our Heroes are delayed there. It used to be separate scenes: Edna & Co. delayed in Detroit, with not much happening except the reason for the delay, and a later scene where they came across a random dragon attack elsewhere. additionally, the secondary antagonist runs around with an old friend who used to be two separate characters: the character he is now, and another old friend of theirs who was just sort of a generic asshole who didn't serve much purpose in the story.

thanks to cutting and combining scenes and characters this way, the story moves along faster, the stakes involved in those scenes and characters are higher, and everything is more tightly tied together. when I finally queried, Remarkable Retirement was down to just 98,000 words (published at 99,000 words).

similarly, in the book now on sub (Buried Things aka GroundskeeperWIP), I cut most of a short chapter from the antagonist's POV. I tried it as a prologue but didn't like that I don't do prologues in general although I know some folks love them, then tried moving it later but didn't like that either, and finally ended up just using bits of it that I felt were particularly useful in a chapter focused on a different character. I also cut a chapter from the POV of a friendly ghost/wingman from beyond the grave (but have it saved in case a future editor's like "you know what we need—")

worth noting that Buried Things wasn't massively overwritten. I think the longest draft was 104k or 106k, while it's on sub at about 90k (and the entirety of the last 4,000 words I cut from it was through line edits, not plot changes). however, both chapters stalled the story without adding much. what they did add, I was able to incorporate into other chapters instead.

expanding

while Remarkable Retirement's need for cuts was more obvious, some things were also expanded upon, especially with my publisher! my editor felt that the romantic subplot needed a little more build-up—not in terms of what happens or how it happens, but in terms of making it clearer why these two people start to have those feelings. similarly, a friend who read Buried Things thought it was great overall but that a particular character wasn't fleshed out enough.

in both cases, I think it was that instance of "things in my head do not always make it onto the page." when my friend had questions about the character in Buried Things, I had answers; those answers just weren't on the page. same thing with the romantic subplot in Remarkable Retirement. so it was a matter of taking what was in my head and making sure it actually came across on the page, although in other cases I may realize I don't already know that stuff and need to brainstorm to develop it more.

both together

in the case of NettieWIP, even though I'm not done drafting yet, I already know some stuff I'll need to cut and expand on! I find I'm repeating myself a lot in this draft, plus it's very dialogue heavy. so I'll need to cut back on some themes and emotions I keep bringing up, as well as trim down the dialogue and let the murder investigation not be entirely conversation.

conversely, there's virtually no setting description or atmosphere, so those are things I'll want to expand on in revisions.

tl;dr: in conclusion

okay this got really long because if you get me talking about writing it is impossible to shut me up, but here are the major takeaways for everyone playing along at home:

my general process: (1) finish the draft; (2) let the draft breathe; (3) read the entire draft; (4) focus on big-picture changes first; (5) plan your revision/rewrite; (6) rewrite/revise; (7) use beta readers

knowing the heart of your story helps you figure out what to cut, what to keep, and what to expand on

knowing the heart of your story helps you figure out what feedback might be useful and what feedback might not be right for this book

it can also helpful to look for patterns of feedback, but this is mostly helpful when your beta readers share your identity, particularly if you are a marginalized creator

thanks so much for giving me an excuse to drone on and on about writing your question!

#answered #writing tips #writing process #revision #writeblr #e's writing #the remarkable retirement of edna fisher #groundskeeperwip #nettiewip

[waitmyturtles]

I’ve been SO EXCITED to write this: KINN! PORSCHE! META!

Yes, I am terribly, terribly late to writing this and I admittedly only started watching the series with two or three episodes left as I was just joining Tumblr. But my dash pushed me to watch the series and I’m so glad I did. KinnPorsche is also my first Thai BL drama (actually my first Thai drama, too) ever, so if I’m missing any obvious Thai BL trope references, I apologize in advance.

The whole origin story of KinnPorsche is super fascinating, not the least that Mile Phakphum himself, as one of the lead actors and key producers, had full awareness of his own role both in plot and show development. Considering the central point I want to make in this meta, I think this straddling between reality and drama that Mile was able to achieve with screenwriter Pond Krisda helped the cast and crew to achieve the environmental effect that I think helped the show become the absolute success that it is. 

By environmental effect, what I’m referring to is the universe that KinnPorsche created. I’ve seen posts and tweets here on Tumblr refer to complaints by other viewers that it wouldn’t be at all realistic that such a universe as KinnPorsche -- one in which multiple family members, friends, and acquaintances are queer and/or exploring -- could ever exist.

That is such lazy and bullshit thinking, and I think the high majority of viewers who followed this show know that that discriminatory thinking is also bullshit. I know, and have worked with, families and communities with all manner of layers of queerness and spectrum-traversing identities and expressions contained in their circles. 

I’ve written before that what keeps me coming back to Asian dramas across the continent is that so much content is written to be family-centric in emotional and behavioral structures that I understand intrinsically as an Asian-American. Sure, there is PLENTY about KinnPorsche that kept me very hooked:

- gorgeous men

- gorgeous men in VERY VISUALLY COMPELLING situations, heh

- fabulous acting and cinematography

- fantastic balance of comedy, drama, and camp

- Tankhun, the absolute god(dess)

- Jeff Satur (he’s otherworldly!)

But as the kind of viewer I am, what I’m looking for in a drama is what’s unsaid, what’s left unspoken about the show’s internal reality. (For instance, I’ve written a lot about Extraordinary Attorney Woo, and how that show normalized the agency that an autistic individual SHOULD rightly have in determining her professional and romantic fates, despite society’s demands that she depend on others to make those decisions for her.)

What was left unsaid, unspoken, in KinnPorsche for me was a family aspect that I very much enjoyed, focused namely on our head patriarch, Korn. Korn, a man who’ll stop at nothing to ensure the success and security of his family as the major entity of an extensive crime syndicate. 

As I mentioned before, what I loved about KinnPorsche was the environmental effect of queerness as a given throughout the show. The only moment I can think of where we saw overt homophobia was Big forcing Porsche into Kinn’s room early in the series, and Porsche calling Big out. 

What I DIDN’T see in KinnPorsche was something that I think taints a lot of Western content about queerness -- namely (ugh), how do the other characters feel about queerness? And usually, those “other” characters I’m referring to are, say, cishet family members or friends who have to go through their journeys of acceptance for the main queer characters to be accepted in the worlds of those cishet individuals.

To me, this kind of construct is so unnecessary Western, centering on each supporting individual’s process of acceptance as a necessary plot line before the Western show can even create a world in which queerness is an unspoken given. (I want to quickly just say, as a tangent, that I think Western writers, directors, and studios think that Western audiences demand this, because our Western culture is so self-demanding, selfish, and self-referential. Namely, how could a Western audience ever relate to a universe of queerness? Western writers need to make their content about the cishet audience first, and queerness second. The last thing I ever need to see again on Western screens is a cishet parent coming to terms with a child’s queerness. We are in the 21st century. I don’t need those stories anymore!)

So, in comparison to these constructs that I continue to see in the West -- what did KinnPorsche give us?

KinnPorsche gave us a relatively sociopathic, relatively bloodthirsty, and murderous crime head in Korn, a guy who cares about his family in kind of twisted ways, and someone who clearly offs family members (like Gun and Thee) before allowing the business to be affected. In other words, he’s a good crime character, a wack-ass rationalizer who’s scary and calculating.

As far as I can recall, the only reference he ever made to the queerness of any of his three sons was when he spoke with Kinn about hooking up with Porsche their first night in the hotel room. And it wasn’t a conversation about, like, omg Kinn ur gayyyy?? It was -- what were you thinking, sleeping with your bodyguard? As a mom, if my kids needed bodyguards (wow), I might ask the same question!

In other words, Korn, at the moment of time that we saw in KinnPorsche, was just a dad. A crime-driven dad who cared for his family business and his sons. At no time did the queerness of his sons need to be separately contextualized for anyone else or anything related to work.

Tankhun and Kinn were integral parts of the business meetings and decisions. Tankhun gave his input -- fabulously, of course, but we never saw Korn wince. We never, EVER saw Korn embarrassed. To Korn, these were his sons, the men who would inherit the family business after his passing. Who they were vis à vis their queerness was never an issue for Korn, and never written as an issue for the show. Korn’s focus was solely about keeping the family and the business together.

I LOVED THIS.

I loved that the queerness of Korn’s sons was never separately contextualized or discussed. It was a total non-issue for Korn. He’s a dad who needed to run his business and loves his sons. That’s it. That’s the lesson that parents need to see and emulate as we raise our own kids (okay, maybe not the crime part, heh). 

While I complain about Western content, there are, of course, volumes of Asian BL shows that deal with the unspoken aspects of queer discrimination in Asian societies. 

However, we didn’t see discrimination in KinnPorsche, and the universe that KinnPorsche created didn’t NEED it. And frankly, while the show attracted its whiners, I think the show absolutely pulled off the universe convincingly. This may need its own meta, but Porsche himself as a fluidly bisexual lead was also brilliant and important and incredible to watch. 

The fact that there was no JOURNEY to watch, a journey of “acceptance” -- I didn’t miss it, and the show didn’t need it. The guys were there, they were themselves, and their world was theirs, without any other extraneous conversation about belonging or acceptance. 

After all that I’ve read and re-blogged about KinnPorsche, I’m thankful this is another one of the dramas I’ve watched that left me feeling totally blissed out after watching it. I needed a lot of time to decompress while and after watching it, because SO MUCH HAPPENED in that fictional world, and is still happening in the world of Be On Cloud and Mile and Apo and all the guys. I understand why the KinnPorsche tag and fandom are still cranking out content strong -- there’s so much to process. 

Mile and Apo and Pond and the Be On Cloud guys deserve all the success and joys that the show has given them, and I can’t wait to see the movie that they’re developing next. If the writing is half as good as KinnPorsche, it’ll be a joy to watch.

#kinnporsche #kinnporche the series #mile phakphum #apo nattawin #mileapo #pond krisda #jeff satur #tong thanayut #kinnporsche meta

[potatomountain]

I want to come on the record and say yes what you did was wrong but the hate mail needs to stop.

Everyone sending hate mail is the wrong. It's unnecessary and frankly doesn't make anyone any better. It's only going to serve to hurt you more.

To anyone reading this: Doom has acknowledged that they did something wrong. That's it. End of discussion.

Jackie is my friend, so I understand why she's hurt. I would be just as hurt if someone had done this to me as well. I have stories I've spent literal years working on, defining character relationships, refining those characters, writing and rewriting plot points. It's a hard thing, coming up with your own story. So I understand why the authors are upset. A lot goes into these stories, more than readers will ever know.

Anyone who doesn't write doesn't know how sometimes we just sit and stare at a blank document because we don't know what to write. How many sleepless nights, late night crying sessions, and copious amounts of coffee/energy drinks go into making these stories. And guess what. We do it all for free.

Sorry, I went off on a tangent at the end there but guys, please be kind. Stop calling Doom names and sending hate mail.

Finally, I hope this doesn't discourage you from writing, Doom.

It takes a long time to hone this craft. Keep at it and don't be afraid to ask for help. The writing community is full of people who are more than happy to help you. -booki

Thank you so much for this.

I'm taking a break and re-evaluating my writing and other things a lot. The last thing I wanted was to hurt Jackie and the other authors and I'm doing my best to make up for it how I can.

I'm going to do my best to make sure I never hurt another in this way again and I wish nothing but the best for Jackie and her stories and everyone else.

And yes I would also appreciate the hate to stop. I know plenty how wrong I was and I'm working on it. The names and more have not been helpful. I've had a lot of other writers and moots and readers express their care and support and it means the world to me.

I don't condone what I did, I don't want anyone to condone what I did, but the harassment is just that- harassment.

So again I appreciate this very much. Thank you.

[wuxiaphoenix]

TV Series Review: Fox in the Screen

Don’t mind me, I’m just here for Yu Yan.

Ahem. I’m giving Fox in the Screen (aka 屏里狐, Ping Li Hu, The Screen Foxes) about 3 out of 5 stars. Because this is a stunning example of having a neat concept and potentially interesting characters and not being able to tell a coherent story.

The concept: Young lady painter Zheng Xuejing wakes up with a hangover and three strange handsome men in her house. The hangover is totally explainable. Last night her long-time fiancé broke it off because he’s marrying her best friend Qionghua instead, there apparently being a child on the way. On top of that her landlord demanded the rent (which she didn’t have ‘cause another screen shop’s been deliberately ruining her business) and said if it wasn’t paid in full by the end of the month, she’d be out on her ear with nothing - she wasn’t a “real” relative, just a daughter of someone’s concubine, after all.

So. Drinking ensued. And in the process of said drinking she apparently stumbled into a yao contest for a magical screen and paintbrush. And won it, because she is a painter. She painted three foxes, Red (Yu Yan), White (Bai Sheng), and Black (Xiao Hei) - all of whom happened to be huli jing trapped in the screen, now bound to her by contract for ten years. The screen apparently is a yaoguai trap, and there’s all kinds of “people” who want it for the spirits trapped inside.

On top of that while Bai Sheng and Xiao Hei are just relieved to be out, even if it means serving a human, Yu Yan is a full demon lord, had been in the screen almost a hundred years, and apparently was one day away from being set free by the limits of the screen’s own power when... suddenly ten-year contract to a mere human. He is beyond ticked off. The only reason he doesn’t kill Xuejing for the insult is he’d still be in servitude to whoever ended up with the screen next. And at least a human painter isn’t an evil Daoist or Japanese mage out to drain yao energy to fuel his own spells.

(Yes, both of those show up later.)

Me after the first ep: “Oh, awesome! We’ll get a slice-of-life of an ancient Chinese painter building her business up to success, interspersed with magical mishaps, yaoguai attacks, and Yu Yan and Xuejing working out how to work together without killing each other. Sounds cool!” In short, I was hoping for something along the lines of Chef Hua, only with painting and fox spirits.

That is... not what happened.

I’m three-quarters of the way through and just to cover some of the wild tangents so far, Xuejing’s been in a painting contest with magical cheating, been poisoned, effectively died, was brought back by a magical flower that was itself poisoned and rescued by magic, took in the girl who poisoned her (yes, the former best friend - turned out not pregnant, and has made at least one more attempt on her life so far), suddenly declared she had a vow to find out why her father died, ended up insulting the emperor by saying her father had been sentenced unjustly, was sentenced to be executed if she didn’t clear her father’s name... and found out she was actually adopted, her birth mother being killed by some eunuchs literally minutes before she could meet and talk to her. (I won’t spoil you on who her actual parents were in case you want to be surprised; I will say the plot twist was overdone and unnecessary.)

There is almost no painting, and definitely no “this is how a screen shop works and becomes successful in this time”. After Chef Hua and My Heroic Husband? I am incredibly disappointed. I was hoping to see painting stuff!

At this point I’m just watching it to take mental notes of “okay, interesting bit to possibly salvage for other stories” and “Oh dear how did they go off on that tangent?” It’s like the writers were incoherent mangaka trying to cobble together each next episode on a few scraps of the last three scripts, ideas discarded from palace dramas, and sooooo much caffeine it isn’t funny.

I honestly think the actors are doing an excellent job with what they have to work with. The costuming department is on their game, and whoever chose the look for the three foxes deserves all the thumbs-up. Instead of giving them more obvious inhuman traits, each fox has streaks of their color in their hair. (Black has purple streaks.) It’s subtle and very pretty. Also the gradient of red to black in Yu Yan’s outfit is classy. As far as characters go, Yu Yan is the Honorable Demon/Defrosting Ice Prince, Bai Sheng is the gentle homemaker with a dark past, and Xiao Hei is... a puppy. So much a puppy. (It’s explained early on that he’s still barely more than a kid, and while his mother was a proper huli jing his father was actually a dog martial god. Which may explain why his approach to problems like “must win contest!” is “kidnap contest judge and threaten him for the right result”.)

I think this series is a cautionary tale about writing too much by the seat of your pants. If you don’t have a clear image of where your story starts and where you want it to end up, you end up throwing in things at random just to keep the plot going. And I hope Luo Yun Xi (Yu Yan) gets more roles with... better plotting. Because he’s a definite bright spot. And he can sing!

This is the guy who plays Yu Yan, and yes, he does sing the end theme himself.

#fox in the screen #screen foxes #yu yan #tv review

[fairybr4t]

I’ve written this out multiple times but idk how tumblr keeps deleting it as soon as I go to edit the post. Anyway, I’m going to keep it short and sweet since tumblr keeps trying to fuck me everytime I write this out. You’re entitled to your own thoughts, feelings and opinions. Tumblr is a free space to share what you like, be who you wanna be and express yourself fully. At least that’s how I feel about it and that’s just personally how I’ve used it since 2009 or whenever the fuck I joined before high school. But that’s another story. Anyway, you deserve to freely express yourself. And growing and healing BOTH take time. No matter what it is or how big or small it all takes time. And everyone goes through things differently, similarly, but get through it at different times intervals. And that’s okay. You don’t deserve the hate or the shit talk. Idgaf who these anons are, or what you did or didn’t do. People don’t better themselves or get through things with hatred. Constructive feedback from close friends who wants the best for you (who truly truly want the best for you) maybe. But people who don’t know you personally shouldn’t be allowed into your world or be given your time. Time is valuable and sacred enough as it is.. don’t waste it on those not treating you well!. They’re just negative assholes who make assumptions out of not knowing the full story who just want to be nosy and cause unnecessary drama and problems. People like to be trolls sometimes and it can be taken too far. People are human. People make mistakes idc if it was you or if it was someone else. People grow people change people make mistakes constantly whether it’s you to yourself or to someone else doing it to you or someone else. People hurt people sometimes, people hurt themselves sometimes. It’s not right but I’m saying that to say no one’s hands are clean all the time. And that’s something that needs work. The only way to fix them is to look at things like you and ___vs the problemI. But yeah I’m tangenting) all in all im not trying to speak on your situation. Or whatever but I just wanna say that I see you, I hear you and I understand ya and am here if you ever wanna talk! :) take it one day at a time and remmeber taking tiny steps are just as successful as big ones. You’re doing great.

thank you ;_; i appreciate the kind words ❤️

#asks

[adventures-of-team-dystopia]

Without giving too much away (hopefully), here's some of the TAoTD lore I've come up with so far:

• All three members of Team Dystopia are aro/ace. They have a lot more important things to focus on than romance.

• Eclipse sees Mephiles as a surrogate older sibling (a replacement for Shadow if you will), and Mephiles does begin to reciprocate those feelings more and more as the TAoTD series progresses (the main plot of TBoS will revolve heavily around Meph's character development in that regard)

• Black Doom rarely, if ever swears, as he considers it unprofessional and overall unnecessary, and he especially does not like it when Mephiles uses swear words in front of Eclipse.

• Both Black Doom and Eclipse are neurodivergent. Eclipse, despite being the youngest of the group mentally and physically, is highly intelligent, articulate, and proficient in science and technology (in other words, he's basically a full blown child prodigy like Tails), and he likes to regularly go on tangents about the Black Arms' successful planetary conquests and wars against other alien species. Black Doom REALLY likes to gesture with his hands when talking to those outside the hivemind, just so he can communicate exactly how he feels about something (he does this even moreso after being resurrected as a living statue, since he doesn't have the same hive mind control over the Black Arms that his original counterpart did), and he too regularly goes on tangents about plans for future conquests and of the Black Arms' past conquests (guess where Eclipse got it from?). As for Mephiles... I'm not entirely sure yet to be honest, though he does share Doom's trait of gesturing with his hands when speaking, so it's possible that Meph could be neurodivergent as well.

• Humans and Mobians are not used to seeing living inanimate objects outside of fictional media such as Night at the Museum and The Brave Little Toaster, so when they see post-resurrection Black Doom for the first time, they immediately react by asking what the fuck that thing is, and wondering what sort of dark magic could have brought such a being into existence in the first place, and those who survived the Black Arms' previous invasion will react in horror upon realizing that the real Black Doom's soul has in fact been called back from the dead and transferred into a statue of himself, and now he's out to finish what he started twelve years ago, as well as seeking revenge on Shadow for killing him.

With that being said, it is considered a form of necromancy whenever Mephiles uses his magic to bring statues of the deceased to life, as doing so summons the deceased person's soul from beyond the grave to act as the statue's consciousness.

• Black Doom views all organic lifeforms with disdain and is generally distrustful towards them (which falls in line with his original personality, given his preexisting views on humanity), with the only exceptions being Mephiles and Eclipse, who he considers to be the only two people he trusts 100%. Granted, Eclipse is the only truly organic lifeform on the team, but still.

Okay I’m done rambling for now hehe- ^^"

But I will let you all know as soon as I come up with more TAoTD lore that I can share!

#lore dump #taotd thoughts #hive don't look #don't look dreamcast

[icanttakethemonmyown]

*kicks down door respectfully*

ANJE, YOU GOT SOME 'SPLAINING TO DO

I'm just a tad bit upset. Tad. Very small.

Can't wait to see how you're gonna ruin us when we see the reunion (make him grovel, Sam).

Also, if Sam finds out, he's gonna start to see a pattern of Sam playing Better Than Revenge while cooking or doing things around the house.

Signed, Anon who messages you daily.

Aw, anon, I'm sorry to have upset you 🥺 but it was a necessary evil as I'm sure you understand

I want to be very cautious with how I approach possibly writing a reunion, I don't know if I have it in me to do it justice because I too would love to see some grovelling lol

Sam's pettiness truly knows no bounds, I feel like she would have a playlist, but I don't think it would ever get played in front of Andrew. Maybe in the purgatory period of like when they reconnect but haven't properly gotten back together yet - Sam would absolutely be blasting You Never Knew by HAIM

#i just wouldnt want her holding it over his head you know? #like andrew would never be able to win a fight because sam just plays the well i wasnt the one who ended the relationship card #like ew no thats not what i want at all #so i think its gonna be a fine line to walk idk #am i making sense at all? #like yes sam absolutely had her single girl era but i also think she was chasing the fulfillment that andrew gave her #as he was obvs doing too #they just had to find each other again and realise that they were meant for each other #no matter how much thy fucked up in the past #did i just go full unnecessary tangent? sorry for dumbing this on you anon shdjejwjnw #i just live in constant fear that im gonna make sam seem bitchy?? idk idk #is my being socialised as a female showing?? #ANON-WHO-MESSAGES-ME-DAILY ILYSM LIKE I DONT THINK YOU UNDERSTAND HOW EXCITED I GET WHEN I GET ASK NOTIFS #MY BRAIN JUST GOES FRIEND??? IS IT FRIEND WANTING TO SCREAM ABOUT SILLY PROFESSORS WITH ME?? #like genuinely i dont have the words to say how much i appreciate you #you are so funny and insightful and you have taken this dumb idea i had that one time and made it such an enriching experience!! #💘💝💖💗💓💞💕 #all the heart emojis for you #prof!hoz #asks

[audreydoeskaren]

Abridged history of early 20th century Chinese womenswear (part 4.2: 1930s-hair, makeup & accessories)

Source here

Previous posts in the series:

Part 1: 1890s

Part 2: 1900s & 1910s

Part 3.1: 1920s-silhouette

Part 3.2: 1920s-design details

Part 3.3: 1920s-accessories, hair & makeup

Part 4.1: 1930s-silhouette & design

A super late Happy Chinese New Year to all fellow humans who celebrate it!! I’m going to discuss hair, makeup and accessories of the 1930s today in no particular order.

Undergarments

At one point between 1932 and 1934 women in China decided to ditch the breast binders worn since the 1890s and wear brassieres instead. This allowed the natural shape of women’s breasts to show and the contrast between the bust and waist lent the dresses of the mid 30s a soft hourglass shape. The brassieres of the 1930s didn’t have stiffening, boning or foam and relied only on their structure for support, so the shape of the breasts looked very soft and rounded.

Source here

30s Du Barry lingerie sewing pattern for brassieres and drawers. This may not be very representative because brassieres made by different companies looked different, but they usually looked like modern bras with vertical darts and no wires or foam cups.

I must again redirect you to this article on breast binding in China, if you can’t read Chinese Google Translate works just fine. There’s one thing that I’d like to comment on though; the author named breast binding as the sole reason for the small bust measures of women at the time and argued that it caused health problems and hindered the growth of the chest. I think this is true to some extent, but other reasons for the generally small stature of women in this period (and indeed the centuries before) included malnourishment, bad healthcare and lack of exercise. Women weren’t educated about healthy diets and the importance of physical exercise before the 30s, not to mention the non-existent healthcare they received, so they were much shorter and skinnier, and suffered from more illnesses than the average modern woman. Before industrialization, food production was also often insufficient so a lot of women were malnourished.

As popular as brassieres were, some Chinese women chose to go braless. However, I have usually seen braless women in advertisements/pinup posters, so I suspect this would not be very socially acceptable on a daily basis.

Source: lai yiching0926 on Pinterest. I get so many primary sources from this person y’all may as well check out their board on Chinese calendar painting it’s bomb. I also have a Pinterest board where I collect primary sources if anyone is interested, my Pinterest username is also audreydoeskaren.

However, being braless doesn’t mean wearing nothing underneath a cheongsam. Camisoles were worn on the upper body and drawers (which were becoming proto-panties) on the lower body; alternatively a slip could be worn. 30s drawers are really pretty in my opinion, they were high waisted and had an a-line shape, decorated with lace.

To my knowledge, Chinese women in this period did not yet wear girdles, corsets or any other kind of shapewear to take in the waist, at least I have never seen their edges peeking out from underneath the cheongsam. I guess this was also unnecessary as the cheongsam was a light one piece dress and didn’t require any support at the waist.

From my observation, stockings were kind of optional in this period. In the early 20s and before, Chinese women wore short stockings tied up by garters at knee level, but as the skirt hem rose to knee length in the late 20s they probably stopped doing that as the garters would show when they inevitably flash their knees. I assume longer, nude stockings would be worn, held up by a garterbelt or something, but a lot of images of this era showed women with no visible stockings. Teenagers and younger women could wear low knit socks like Western children, but these were not acceptable on grown up women unless they were doing sports. Tights were not yet a thing either.

On top of these undergarments, some women chose to wear ankle length petticoats or pants underneath the cheongsam. This was especially the case around 1934 when the side slits were mid thigh or higher and constantly showing your drawers was likely not the most respectable thing. These petticoats and pants were most commonly white and had decorative trim. Petticoats could have slits down both sides like the outer cheongsam or a flared hem. Pants were straight cut and wide legged. Later in the decade the slits became lower so petticoats and pants weren’t that necessary anymore but many women still chose to wear them, which is fine by me because I think it’s a cute look. Likewise there were many examples of women around 1934 wearing high slit cheongsam without petticoats or pants, especially if they were dancing, so this was likely a matter of personal preference (Western dances like tango, waltz, foxtrot, charleston and swing were introduced to China and popularized in the 20s and 30s. The Paramount dance hall in my native city of Shanghai is a monument to that).

Source here

Mid 30s photograph, high slit cheongsam with pants.

Source here

Later 30s fabric ad, low slit cheongsam with flared petticoat. 

Outerwear

A noteworthy development in the mid 30s was that wearing actual, full blown Western fashion became popularized, but only as outerwear, sportswear or eveningwear; Western day dresses were not often seen on Chinese women. In regards to Western outerwear, a variety of them could be worn over cheongsam. In addition to the fur trim wrap coats popular in the late 20s, women wore capes, vests, suits, coats, knit cardigans and others. It was completely ok to mix and match Western accessories and jackets with cheongsam.

Source here

Short cape.

Source here

Early 30s women’s suit. I know I use this image a lot, it’s just really useful and beautiful :)

Source here

Early 30s fur trim wrap coat.

Source: Sayuu G on Pinterest, link

Long coat with lapels.

Source: Yuan Li on Pinterest, link

Cardigan and jacket. This kind of short sleeved, straight front, collarless jacket on the left was very popular in the mid 30s.

Another cute mid 30s accessory I’m very fond of is the gauntlet glove i.e. gloves that have a very wide trunk opening. I think they have an equestrian flair and look very badass.

Source: Yuan Li on Pinterest, link

1935 cover of The Young Companion. (Why are the useful images always so small? Woe is me)

Earrings were really common in the 30s, you could see them in almost all of the reference photos in this post. 

Hairstyles

Since around 1930 the history of Chinese and Western women’s hairstyles had almost completely synchronized so if you know about vintage Western hairstyles you’re welcome to skip this part.

In the beginning of the 30s the most common hairstyle was a short bob with optional fingerwaves (called waterwaves in this period? I’m not great with terminology). Some bobs in the late 20s/early 30s could be so short that they look like buzz cuts. The defining feature of the fingerwave was the shimmery wave-like pattern in the hair created by pinching and combing the hair while it’s wet with setting products. Just a side note, the way fingerwaves are done in most Chinese period dramas nowadays, uh, leaves much to be desired. That’s because a lot of hairstylists just attach a wavy extension (which you can easily purchase from Taobao...) to the actresses’ forehead and call it a day, but that doesn’t really replicate the structure of the fingerwave and makes it look like the 铜钱头 in Kun Opera instead.

Source: Helen Xu on Pinterest.

Early 30s very short bob.

Source here

Early 30s fingerwave

Another very common hairstyle in the 30s was this mid length bob (either side part or middle part) with a lot of volume at the bottom. I am so puzzled as to how this is achieved, maybe with teasing or curling only at the bottom? That sounds odd.

Source here

Mid 30s fabric ad.

This ad is forcing me to go on a tangent about fabric dyes. This label, Indanthren, sold fabrics dyed from a range of blue or blue-ish colored synthetic dyes made by the German company BASF (which was merged into IG Farben at this time). Because of the introduction of synthetic dyes to China, almost all colors under the sun could be produced or imported so there weren’t really any specific color limitations to the clothing of this period.

Back to hair. Contrary to popular opinion, fingerwaves were not in fashion throughout the 30s, let alone the entire republican era. As the 30s progressed, the fashionable hair length became longer, making it more difficult for fingerwaves to be performed; they were replaced by roller sets and pin curls which are more suitable for longer hair. In the mid 30s, brush out curls with a side part were extremely popular. At this point bangs kind of became a Chinese cultural heritage and a lot of women would wear brush out curls with bangs. There are literally a million patterns for setting brush out curls and every woman probably had her own tricks, so everybody’s hair looked a tad different but the overall idea was the same as Western brush out curls: women would set the hair in the night and sleep with the rollers/pin curls to let them dry, then in the morning they would brush them out until the desirable wavy shape is achieved. Many women also used curling irons to achieve the same hairstyles with heat, which was faster and didn’t require waiting overnight. With that said, the fingerwave didn’t just disappear either, it was often used in conjunction with brush out curls to sculpt specific hairstyles. I’m not a professional vintage hairstylist so I can’t always clock if a hairstyle is done with fingerwaving, brush out curls or both. From my own experience with brush out curls, they are usually more voluminous and have more fizzy ends and the waves don’t line up so perfectly like with fingerwaves because the process is more uncontrollable (or maybe I’m just clumsy).

Source here

Typical mid 30s curls.

The fashionable hair length grew longer toward the end of the decade, with the finished curls reaching either the shoulder or the nape of the neck. Hairstyles became kind of rectangular in silhouette and flat at the crown. They were often pulled back at the sides to create a more rectangular shape for the face.

Source: lai yiching0926 on Pinterest.

Late 30s hairstyles.

Shoes

Again, full westernization here. 30s shoes had higher and thinner heels than 20s shoes, although they were still thicker and lower than modern stilettos. The heels were usually curved Louis heels. 30s shoes often had a single strap across the foot and a wrapped design at the toe. Spectator shoes and Oxfords that covered the whole foot were also worn. Likewise, strapless pumps were fashionable too, sometimes with an open toe design, especially toward the end of the decade. 

Source: genibee on Flickr, link

1935 Sears catalogue. Maybe not very representative since shoes made by different companies looked different, just showing what was possible.

Interestingly, I have never seen an image of a 30s Chinese woman wearing boots or booties outside of an equestrian context. I guess boots either weren’t feminine enough or were too inconvenient under the long cheongsam.

Sportswear

A very interesting development in the 30s was the popularization of sportswear as a result of women doing sports. Wealthy or aristocratic Chinese women have been riding and hunting in an attempt to emulate European lifestyle since decades, but these sports remained elite and untouchable for common women; in the 30s however, more accessible sports like swimming, volleyball and tennis became in vogue. The popularity of swimming was in large part due to the influence of female swimming champion 杨秀琼 Yang Xiuqiong (her name is spelled differently in Cantonese because she was from Hong Kong), who was seen as a national hero for winning a ton of medals in international swimming competitions and breaking records. China began trying to participate in Olympic games around this period and there were also many other women athletes competing in different sports, so sportswear became a necessity.

The design of swimwear in this period followed closely the design of Western bathing suits, usually a tight, short, one piece bodysuit.

Source here

1933 cover of The Young Companion featuring Yang in a swimsuit. There was a stigma around female swimmers at this time though, mostly because of the revealing clothing they had to wear to allow freedom of movement. Many press reports called Yang a “mermaid” because of her physical beauty, trying to reduce her to a sex icon instead of the glorious athlete she actually was. All of the whack rumors about her being a concubine of some rich dude was also really disgusting and distracting from her achievements.

I’ve also seen multiple times this two piece design with shorts and a modernized 肚兜 dudou (a Qing Dynasty undergarment with a function akin to that of a corset cover).

Source: EMKAY on Pinterest

30s pinup girl in two piece swimsuit.

For land sports, women usually wore a short sleeved open collar shirt with shorts, short knit socks and flat pumps.

Source: Jason Tse on Pinterest

1933 cover of The Young Companion featuring a tennis player. 

Makeup

The makeup look of the early 30s was almost identical to the late 20s look, with the thin, elongated eyebrows, large oval shaped blush and delicate red/mauve lips. This continued all the way until around 1938-39.

Toward the end of the decade, the eyebrows started to return to a normal thickness and became kind of arched instead of flat. Eyeshadows became lighter or non-existent. Women used cake mascara to darken their eyelashes, which were separated and evenly spread out. The location of the blush moved slightly downward. Red lipstick was still the most popular but the lips were plumper than in the early 30s. Overall very subtle and small changes to makeup. There were a bunch of Western and Japanese makeup companies trading in China at this point, I couldn’t name any specific ones beside Nivea which was quite popular for affordable skincare products like cream and sunscreen. I assume that actresses and pinup girls would also use Max Factor, but I’m not sure how widely used his products were among the general population. The Hong Kong brand 广生行 Kwong Sang Hong (whose Shanghai branch was called 双妹 “Twin Sisters” and whose advertisements we have seen too many times in this series) was also really popular.

I know I promised to talk about makeup more in this post but unfortunately there really isn’t much to talk about :( So see you next time when I dig into the 1940s!

#1930s #art deco #vintage hair #vintage accessories #vintage shoes #vintage lingerie #chinese history #chinese fashion #historic fashion #vintage #vintage makeup #vintage sportswear #cheongsam #qipao #abridged history of early 20th century chinese womenswear

[notanotherreidgirl]

Lesson Plans

Summary: Spencer’s TA helps him organize his class all while developing a crush on him, little do they know that he feels the same way

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Reader

Warnings: none? there’s some kissing

Word Count: 1434

A/N: I definitely need to go back and edit this one!! 

Dr. Spencer Reid was the most eccentric professor you ever had. 

He didn’t use any technology at all. Opting instead to handwrite his lesson plans on the blackboard in slanted chicken-scratch. He never got through his material anyway, easily getting caught up on tangents and explaining his own jokes. On the first day of class, he passed out an 8-page double-sided, single spaced syllabus. It was clear that he spent a lot of time on it but he had neglected to staple the pages together so no one walked out with more than 5 pages. Not that it really mattered, he barely followed the syllabus and half of it were recommendations for optional reading. 

The lecture hall was always full but for the people who weren’t auditing, the class was a bit of a mess. Despite the chaotic nature of the course, students kept signing up. How could they not? Dr. Reid was charming and effusive and he rounded everyone’s grades up to an A. When you took the class you were completely entranced by him but you couldn’t shake your frustration with the lack of organization. What was even worse was that most people just took his class for an easy A and hardly bothered learning most of the material. You couldn’t believe it - you had been dying to take Criminal Psychology and you poured your heart and soul into your assignments. When the end of the semester rolled around and TA applications opened, you applied without hesitation.

When Spencer saw that you had applied to be his TA, he very nearly hired you without reading any of the other applications. He refrained from referring to his obvious affection towards you as a crush - that epithet seemed too juvenile - but that’s exactly what it was. A giant schoolboy crush that had completely obliterated his ability to think. He had a tendency to ramble but it was exponentially worse this past semester with you sitting in the front row. 

It only took him one week to commit your routine to memory. Get to class 5 minutes early, sit in the front (5 seats from the left wall), drive him crazy for the whole lecture (chewing on pencil erasers and giving him small smiles when he made eye contact), have lunch at the cafe downstairs, then camp out at the library for a few hours. You were a fastidious creature, orderly and straightforward. It came through in your papers too. Well-constructed arguments that got to the point without unnecessary filler. He was embarrassed to admit that he made copies of your papers and reread them, taking note of your syntax and word choice. 

Your first order of business as his TA was to digitize his notes, taking pictures of the blackboard after class and making concise powerpoints that were sent out in friendly weekly emails. You also revamped his syllabus and held your own office hours since his were always well attended by adoring students who never seemed to ask questions about the course material. It was a lot of work but you could talk about the course material all day. You loved the class and you loved teaching your students which would’ve been just fine if you didn’t start to love something, or rather someone as well. 

The semester flew by and your feelings for Spencer only grew stronger with every day, with every evening you spent grading papers together, with every coffee wordlessly passed between you, with every lesson plan you outlined together. And now it was all coming to an end. You were standing in the doorway of his office making promises to stay in touch and thanking him for this experience while the voice in your head was practically begging you to say something. But you didn’t. What would you even say? How does one tell their boss that they are completely in love with them? What if he didn’t want anything to do with you afterwards. With these thoughts heavy on your mind, you finally turned to leave. 

“Wait, Y/N, I know what you did for me this semester.” Spencer realized that this was his last chance to say something, anything to let you know how he felt. His words came out in a rush, “I know that I’m not the best professor. I don’t follow the syllabus and my grading system is all over the place and I ramble. I’m even doing it now. I’m rambling. I know there are so many things I should change but -”

“No!” you immediately clamped a hand over your mouth but it was too late, your impassioned outburst had already escaped. To say you were mortified was the understatement of the century, you would have given anything to disappear right then. 

Spencer, on the other hand, was thoroughly amused. It was as if you stole all his anxious energy away. “What do you mean, no?”

“It’s nothing! I just - well, I just mean that you shouldn’t change anything. You’re perfect just the way you are.” Your eyes widened. How was it possible that every word out of your mouth made the situation exponentially worse? “Not perfect - no one’s perfect! I just mean that you're fine. Your class is fine!”

For a moment you recalled the transporters in Star Trek. Beam me up Scotty, you thought uselessly. 

Feeling exceptionally bold, Spencer pulled a chair up to his desk. “I think I know what you mean, darling. Why don’t you take a deep breath and have a seat?”

You had been considering making a run for it but your legs promptly turned to mush after he called you darling. He had pulled the chair to his side of the desk so you were sitting right in front of him less than 2 feet away. You were determined to get the situation under control so you took a deep breath before starting.

“Dr. Reid, I wouldn’t want you to change a single thing about your teaching style. I became your TA because I wanted other students to enjoy this class as much as I did. Everything I did this semester was so that you could keep teaching in the irregular, fun and inspiring way that you do. I didn’t mean to overstep and I’m sorry if I gave you the impression that I think you’re not a good professor. Because you’re not. It’s the opposite.”

After finishing you nervously looked up at his face expecting admonishment only to be met with pure adoration in his honeyed brown eyes. He reached into your lap and took your hands in his. You had expected the hands of an FBI agent to be hard, weathered from chasing down killers but his were soft and he held you so carefully like he was afraid you’d pull away. 

“Thank you” he whispered. He brought your hands to his lips and you had to press your feet into the ground to keep from floating away. “I wanted to say thank you for typing up comprehensible notes and replying to every email and making sure there’s always sugar by the coffee machine and listening to what I have to say and for letting me be myself”

Your breath hitched, you hadn’t realized that he’d noticed everything you’d been doing in the background. You squirmed in your seat, taken aback by the intensity of his gaze. Could he see right through you? 

“It’s really nothing, Dr. Reid” you murmured. 

“No, it's not,” he leaned in closer, so close you could feel his hot breath on your neck and you were sure he could hear the drumbeat of your heart. “Not everyone is willing to be patient with me and even fewer go out of their way to make things easier or better without trying to change who I am. I know I’m a difficult person but you don’t make me feel that way. I’m beyond lucky to have you.”

He paused before adding, “That is, if you’d have me?”

Whatever was left of your self-restraint disintegrated when you pressed your lips to his. You laughed into his mouth, joy bubbling from your lips and filling Spencer with an incredible warmth. He smiled and pulled you into his lap, “Is that a yes?”

“Yes, yes, yes” you punctuated each affirmation with a kiss to his nose, his cheeks, his temples. You wanted to tell him that he wasn’t difficult at all. That he was charming and capable and lovely but there would be plenty of time for that. For now, you held him tight and you didn’t have any intention of letting go.

#spencer x reader #criminal minds #spencer reid x reader #criminal minds fanfiction #professor reid

[angelsndragons]

Day 3

Oh, man, y’all, I have been saving this for weeks so you have been warned. Today, I’m going to talk about Caduceus, Caleb, and their connection. Because honestly, though they rarely interact one on one, their relationship is fascinating.

Now, my first hot take is that their relationship is more similar to that of Caleb and Beau’s than Caleb’s relationships with anyone else. Caleb’s high Int, meh Wis combined with Caduceus’ high Wis, low Int means that the pair of them just do not get the other and both of them know it. They often get to the same conclusion using wildly different methods and as such, are in danger of talking past each other and going in circles like Caleb and Beau do. They simply use different methods to avoid the same pitfalls. Any time they zoom in on the other in a group chat, we can see how each of them keeps an open mind and does his best to make the other understand. Caleb accommodates Caduceus by simplifying his language and talking more about direct actions and feelings rather than the abstract tangents. In turn, Caduceus accommodates Caleb by giving him his full focus, clarifying what Caleb actually says, and above all, lowering his insight. What do I mean by that? Caduceus knows that he makes Caleb uncomfortable with his ridiculous ability to read people and that Caleb genuinely doesn’t want to be read, both because Caleb spent most of their relationship hiding a lot- what he did to his parents, how he feels about Jester and Veth, his time travel plans, etc- and because Caleb is afraid of how Caduceus perceives him. Like he and Yasha said way in the 90s, it is the forgiveness and acceptance which are the most difficult to deal with. And Caduceus can accept and forgive a lot. Honestly, a great example of this is during ep 98, Caduceus repeatedly asks Caleb what he wants and what his goals are relative to the rest of the group. 

Beyond their very different outlooks, Caduceus and Caleb do share some core internal commonalities. Neither of them are good at articulating their feelings- they both find it hard, uncomfortable, and often unnecessary. They are both project and gift-giving boys at heart; Caleb’s magical developments lately have all been about helping his friends even as he takes those first uncertain steps in verbalizing how much he actually cares about them. Caduceus focuses on helping his friends achieve their aims as he takes his own uncertain steps towards claiming his own future. The two of them clocked each other as fellow project nerds almost from the beginning; Caduceus likes Caleb in their first meeting because while the others are hemming and hawing, Caleb says do this for us and we will do something for you, no ifs, ands, or buts. Caleb gifts Caduceus the periapt and the book on corrupted plants; Caduceus supports Caleb’s lead on the Assembly and Essek and protects him from Ickithon. At their cores, Caleb and Caduceus are each driven by a sense of duty, serving his country for Caleb and serving the Wildmother for Caduceus. Duty has become a cornerstone in how they talk about and to each other, especially lately. Family means the world to each of them.  

What I love about this relationship is how firmly it is built on mutual respect and on similar moral outlooks. The two of them use entirely different methods and beliefs to get to those outlooks but I love that they can recognize the other as a kindred spirit and ally anyway. Caleb and Caduceus recognize each other’s talents and check in with each other during difficult conversations or important decisions. It’s nice watching them have each other’s backs.

And I guess I have to talk about the eighth floor since it stirred up so much controversy. Here is what Caduceus was going off of in that conversation: Caleb had never entered any of the bittersweet rooms on the floor, just the bad ones. Caduceus knows that Caleb will never let himself forget his childhood or what he did. Caduceus does not think Caleb needs a physical embodiment of his childhood home which he has to earn the right to enter. That is what he meant, same as Jester. This place should not be a punishment or a reward he earns. That is what he could not communicate and he recognized that. Like he did with Beau later in dead forest, Caduceus kept trying to communicate what he really meant but backed off once Caleb wasn’t having it. He finds the memory lovely. He leaves tea in the room just in case Caleb wants to come back. Honestly, I am okay with some friction between them over this miscommunication- they both need practice in verbalizing their hurts, boundaries, and general feelings. 

Can’t wait to see if the pair has a few minutes this week to chat; there is a lot going on with both of them and their conversations tend to be productive.

#caduceus clay #cr caduceus #caduceus meta #caduceus clay week #caleb widogast #critical role #cr spoilers #my meta #the mighty nein #these boys have an underrated dynamic and i love it

[post-modern-prometheus]

I'm sorry in advance for this kind of heartbreaking hc,

But image Peter being considerably younger when he broke Erik out of the Pentagon like 12-14 (putting his age closer to the other Apocalypse-era XMen)

And him having issues with the government as a result of this so he leaves his mom and little sister for Xavier's institute so they wouldn't have to deal with the government's ramifications

Leaving Peter to be primarily raised by Alex (who decided to leave the military once he heard that there was a young mutant who needed a home and training), Hank (who Peter is still kinda iffy about seeing as he tried to kill Erik), and Charles (who's still kinda going through some personal stuff a la breaking up with Erik again)

So at least in the beginning he's raised and spending most of his time with Alex (don't come at me, I just really want older brother figure Alex, I think Peter would be really pumped to have an older brother, someone that could focus solely on him, image the chaos and shenanigans they could get into)

But now we get to the sad part at the beginning of Apocalypse with Alex's unfortunate (and unnecessary death) just being another reminder of how he's not good enough, that he's never fast enough to save his own family

The trauma that Alex's death would leave him with, the anger toward himself for missing his adopted brother

I think this would totally change Scott and Peter's dynamic

In the beginning we see Scott's anger toward Peter for missing Alex, but imagine how his response (both initial and long term) to Alex's death would change upon seeing Peter (who just realized that he missed Alex) [don't judge him, there's a lot of students to worry about, and he wasn't expecting Alex to be back at the school so soon, his trip was cut short by Scott's violent mutation manifestation] just completely breaking down, tears gushing down his face, snot rolling down, him in a crumpled ball on the ground hyperventilating while muttering to himself that he was too slow again and that he's sorry Alex, he was so very sorry, he didn't know that he was back, and he should have been faster

I wanna see Scott and Peter helping each other through the trauma of losing Alex

Scott helping Peter realize that it wasn't his fault, that there was no way for Peter to have got to Alex I'm time, reminding him of all the lives he was able to save, and how they're all so much better off with Peter in their lives

I wanna see Peter slowly start to let the other X-MEN (and even the younger kids at the school) into his personal life, let them see the real him, not just what he presents to the world under a thick mask of sarcasm and surface level aloofness

I wanna see them supporting Peter, building up a new found family, a family that Peter is so scared of loosing again, of being too late to save them, but a family that understands this trauma, and works with him through it to show that they'll always be okay, and they'll always be there for each other

I want my kids to be happy with their little found family okay

(sorry if this is kind of ranty and full of tangents and spelling/grammar mistakes this is the first thing I did when I woke up, I've been thinking about it all night)

me seeing alex as peter's older brother then reading the rest

#peter maximoff #alex summers #scott summers

[phoenixyfriend]

I’ve been trying to figure out the best obi wan ship. They all have one slightly problematic thing this way or that. I’ve landed on the idea of obi wan and an equal is pretty top tier. But then I saw a picture of Coran from voltron. Coran and Obiwan might be a disaster but also both are dad shaped, both are bad ass, both are ginger, both have an accent. I think it could work. But another part of me is like Coran is just obi and jarjar mashed together. At the very least they hooked up.

Hey I just had restaurant ramen and Starbucks and actually feel like a human being so let's do something unnecessary but funny. I'm taking this as a challenge, anon.

Also IMO Coran has more in common with C3P0 than with JarJar

So obviously, both of these happen in Big Space, but the difference appears to be density. We see about the same complexity of culture and species interactions, but Voltron covers more galaxies. It's vaguely implied that Earth, at least, is the only planet with sapient life in the Milky Way.

I think the way I want to play this out, culturally, is that the Voltron area of the universe covers a much wider, but much more sparsely populated area, while the SW-verse is just the one very densely populated (in part because apparently humans just went Literally Everywhere) galaxy, where they didn't necessarily bother with developing the tech to go to other galaxies (except Rishi, which only sort of counts) because they haven't really even charted out their own yet. It was never contacted by the Voltron side of things because [checks notecards full of excuses] it's really far away from Altea and all that, and the Force shielded the galaxy from Galra interests because Reasons.

All this to say that the two franchises didn't interact until after the Voltron plotline was already over. We'll say it went mostly canon, except Allura survived because uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh fuck that.

We'll say that this is mid-TCW, you know, before Obi-Wan is a bundle of repressed traumas and bad coping mechanisms that's lost almost everyone he's ever loved to the dark side through death or corruption. He's still (mostly) okay! Anakin's not dark (or at least, not as dark as he could be; Obi-Wan doesn't know about the Tuskens), and Ahsoka's still in good standing and most people are alive and--and okay the army is a massive ethical violation he hates with his very soul and he misses Qui-Gon and Anakin's keeping secrets and pulling away from him every day but He's Fine, Guys.

He's Fine.

In comes a ship from not Wild Space, but beyond that. Intergalactic visitors, from the direction of the deeply concerning Force bullshit they felt a few years ago. Translation tech is decent enough on both sides that they get to talking pretty quickly. The explorer is actually a member of the Blade of Marmora, who gets the absolute most basic info (approximately this many inhabited planets, approximately this many trillions of sapients in the recorded galaxy, basic structure of the government for the past however many years, most recent conflict, etc.)

BoM person is like "cool, okay so you guys are really well set-up so I'm just gonna head back and kick this up a few rungs of the coalition ladder because this is way above my paygrade, I'll make sure you get some diplomats who can maybe help out with the whole galactic civil war situation as neutral parties."

The Voltron Coalition does send a diplomat! They, uh, also send Coran, who isn't technically a diplomat, but he's high-level.

The thing is, okay, that Coran is mostly just... passably competent at things. He's a jack of all trades, master of none type. He knows a lot of things, actually, but his practical knowledge in high pressure situations tends to be up in the air. He knows how to fix the Castle Ship and various technologies, but all of that info is ten thousand years out of date. He was a competent fighter at one point but these days his back gives out. He's very knowledgeable regarding intergalactic politics but, again, that information is ten thousand years out of date. He's also a little prone to social gaffs in dicey situations (e.g. the inciting incident in the Voltron Show episode where he misses the single day with clear skies), but puts in so much goddamn effort to make things happen.

In this manner, he's like a warped mirror of what Obi-Wan is and could be.

THAT SAID

Coran is actually really good with teenagers, and specifically with training them.

And Obi-Wan... isn't.

Obi-Wan's snarky and snippy and sassy, and he's decent enough at teaching and he's great at being a jokey friend and all, but he's not necessarily very good at emotions. And unfortunately for Obi-Wan, the teenagers he spends the most time with are Really Full Of Emotions. He tries, bless him, but he's just... he doesn't respond well to emotional conversations at the best of times.

His son-figure saying "You're like a father to me" leads to a response of... radio silence. Guys. That's not the mark of a man who knows how to talk about his feelings with the people he cares about.

In swans Coran with the various other diplomatic envoys of the visiting extragalactic community. The entire situation is really leading to a lull in the war because nobody wants to risk pissing off this clearly well-funded, well-powered third party. As a result, many of the High Generals can interact with the envoys, even if they spend quite a bit of time eyeing the Separatist representatives on the other side of the room, because clearly Everyone Needs A Seat At This Table.

It's a very tense situation.

Obviously, Coran is exactly the weird uncle that goes around telling plausibly-exaggerated stories about Weblums and Yalmors and Balmeras. I'm going to say at least one former Paladin is there, maybe Hunk. Hunk's fun, and also very willing to help Coran make friends and seem Amicable instead of Distant by correcting some of the exaggerations. There's a nice, calm atmosphere in a bubble around Coran and his nonsense, and it's a weird situation but arguably just... you know. It's good. He's good at making people feel safe around him.

Cue the hissed argument between Skywalker and Kenobi. The actual cause of said argument isn't important, just the fact that, in a dark corner where they're less likely to cause a PR issue, Anakin and Obi-Wan are having it out. Anakin's maybe twenty, still a lanky ragebaby, all that fun stuff. Obi-Wan is a the endpoint of every too-young brotherdad. He's thirty-six but feels like he's sixty-three. He's tired, but trying so damn hard to still connect with Anakin and just--just--

Obi-Wan gives himself a few minutes to calm down before following Anakin. He doesn't even remember what they were arguing about, really, but he has to mend the bridge before it frays even more than it already has. If Anakin goes to Palpatine for advice again, he's going to... do something. Obi-Wan isn't sure what, but he just has to fix this.

What he finds is... well, Anakin did end up going to vent to a man of an earlier generation who acts like a slightly eccentric older relative, but it's not Palpatine for once.

The goofy, slightly abrasive but mostly charming, brightly-colored representative of the Voltron Coalition is standing in the little balcony that Anakin's made it to, listening as Obi-Wan's recently-knighted padawan vents. The man nods and makes noises at the appropriate times, and then asks questions that are... maybe a little too accurate.

"You said that you view him as a father, that he raised you after you left your mother."

"Well, yeah, but he doesn't think I'm ready, or--"

"No parent ever does."

"...my mom thought I was ready to become a Jedi."

"I can't speak for your mother," the representative says, "but the princess of my people, Allura... I half-raised that girl from the beginning, and after the destruction of Altea, we were all the other had left. I watched her lead battles and bring life to planets, trying to rebuild a universe out of the ashes of what we'd left behind... I saw the evidence with my own eyes, and I still, every time, I worried for her."

"Why?"

"I worried that she'd be hurt, that she wasn't ready, that she'd make a decision she regretted. Often, she did, and I had to help her back up, and while she's always come back, stronger than before... she is the closest thing I have ever had to a daughter, and I will always worry for her. Every parent does. Do you think, perhaps, that your own Jedi Master, that you consider a father, may worry because he looks at you like a son? That it's not that he doesn't trust you, but that he doesn't trust the world around you?"

Obi-Wan feels his heart in his throat.

The conversation continues in that vein. While Obi-Wan can't say he likes the fact that this stranger is putting words in his mouth, if only as hypotheticals, he can't deny that there's a part of him that relaxes as Anakin does, as every frustrated fresh-knight question gets a measured elderly-steward response that's angled to consider the interpretation that favors Anakin and Obi-Wan in equal measure. Every word encourages Anakin to talk things out and lay boundaries and express his frustrations to Obi-Wan in the plainest words possible.

There's a story in there, more than one. The representative tends to go off on tangents, ones that Anakin sometimes finds interesting and sometimes just resigns himself to. Mostly, though, it goes well, and Obi-Wan... well, he's always been 'a nosy little bastard,' according to quite a few people.

(In his defense, the terms they'd used about Quinlan's 'investigative personality' had been quite a bit stronger.)

He eavesdrops to the end, and Anakin doesn't notice at all. Obi-Wan's not sure if he should try to address Anakin's lack of awareness of the world around him. He's not technically Anakin's master anymore. The comment may be taken as a criticism of his worth and capability, rather than a sincere desire to see his padawan not die.

He approaches the representative instead. He intends to introduce himself. Instead, the first words that tumble out of his mouth are:

"How do you do it?"

The man--older than he looks from a distance, more wrinkles than the bright hair would suggest, but not quite elderly yet--turns and lifts a brow. "Hm?"

"I'm sorry, I'm--" Obi-Wan grimaces. "I'm Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. The young man you were just talking to is my former padawan, er, my former apprentice. I've been finding it harder and harder to speak with him over the past few years, and it seems that every interaction we have leads to an argument. How do you... manage that? I can't get him to listen to me at all."

"Ah, teenagers," the man sighs.

"He's twenty."

The representative pauses, and turns to him. "Are you the one he says raised him? The father?"

"Well... yes, I suppose that's one way to phrase it," Obi-Wan says, eyes darting to the side. He doesn't know how to explain the whole attachment situation to someone who barely knows what a Jedi is. He has even less of an idea of how to explain his own broken ability to speak of emotion, the parts of his mind that Bant clucks over and attributes to his own complicated relationship with Qui-Gon. "I had custody as his primary guardian from ages nine to nineteen and was the primary individual for handling his schooling, health, and general upbringing."

"That sounds to me like a very convoluted way of saying you were his father in all but name."

Obi-Wan grimaces. "I'm not exactly old enough to be his father, and I wasn't exactly the person he was supposed to learn from; I was the... back-up option."

"It seems he cares for you very much."

"He didn't have much of a choice," Obi-Wan says, with the kind of helpless smile and awkward shrug he's long gotten used to sharing with people when they ask. "And I assure you he'd have been happier with the man that was meant to teach him."

"I'd say that the 'would have' in this situation is much less important than what is," the representative says. Obi-Wan probably should have paid more attention to his name. "I wasn't in a position to define my relation to Allura or her father in the way that truly suited our situation, by... oh, tradition, social norms, public relations, take your pick. I was a very well-regarded official, of course, but I wasn't royalty, not even nobility, and I certainly wasn't wasn't legally or publicly part of the family. But for all the limitations there, I was still able to find ways to tell her and her family what they meant to me, and they in return. Your apprentice cares for you very much, and I'm sure you care back, but I'd hazard quite the guess that you've no idea how to tell him that."

"I... I shouldn't," Obi-Wan says. "I'm fond of him, of course, but I've no wish to smother him, and to simply say it would be undignified. I imagine he'd laugh in my face."

The representative raises one eyebrow and takes a sip of his drink.

"Master Kenobi," he says carefully. "Might I suggest you go find your young man, tell him you love him, and perhaps give him a hug?"

Obi-Wan's face flares red. It's been years since anyone short of Yoda has spoken to him like that.

"I'm not a child," he sniffs, trying to angle enough away that the blush isn't as noticeable. He's damnably prone to such things. "You're not that much older than me."

The man laughs, and Obi-Wan lifts his glass to his lips in a futile attempt to hid the embarrassment a little more. "Oh, not counting the stasis, I've well reached the age of six hundred and twenty-four, my boy!"

Obi-Wan chokes on his drink.

The man laughs a little more, but thumps him on the back until he's breathing normally again.

"Yes, most of the humans I've told have had quite the reaction!" the representative assures him. "But yes, even with the times adjusted to what any given local year is, I am significantly longer-lived than most species."

"No kidding," Obi-Wan manages. He wipes at his mouth with the back of his hand and looks over at the representative. He takes in the wrinkles and bright eyes, and says, "Well, I must say you look very well for a near-human of such an age. I can only name one person in that category that has managed better, and I haven't seen her since I was a child."

"I shall take that as the compliment it's intended to be," the representative says, twisting the edge of his mustache and beaming.

The man is... well, goofy, really, and quite a bit older than Obi-Wan had thought, but he's quite the charmer. Obi-Wan faintly compares him to a few different people in the back of his mind, but nothing quite fits. For all that the man is quite the jokester and--going by some things he'd seen from the corner of his eye in the main party--a master of physical comedy, the representative is actually more competent than he looks, and for all his visible age, not bad to look at. He is also, seemingly, an expert in dealing with teenagers and young adults, something Obi-Wan himself is... decidedly not.

He really should go speak with Anakin.

And there's a war to fight.

He doesn't really have much time, even with the recent lull.

He's in no place to be looking at the clean-shaven jaw and wondering what it would feel like under his lips, or to let himself consider whether this man would be the kind to have an hours-long discussion as to the narrative forms common in other galaxies, and whether they have anything paralleled to those in Obi-Wan's own, or if this man would show the same enthusiasm over teas that he'd shown over the hors d'oeuvres inside.

He should... really go find Anakin.

"I suppose it's time to find my padawan," he says, more to fill the air than anything. "Er... thank you, both for speaking with him, and for speaking with me."

"Not a problem at all, Master Kenobi!" the representative says, and Obi-Wan realizes that there's one last thing he may have... forgotten.

"This is terribly embarrassing, but I don't believe I caught your name?" Obi-Wan says.

"Coran Hieronymus Wimbleton Smythe, at your service!" the man says, with a sweeping bow. "As you can imagine, most simply call me Coran."

"Then I insist you call me Obi-Wan," he says, and before he can stop himself, "Might I bother you with an invitation to a shared tea time? You seem a knowledgeable fellow, and I'd appreciate the chance to... eh, pick your brain, shall we say."

It's not the smoothest come on he's ever put out there, or the most easily interpreted, but... well. Perhaps it's for the best. He's rather often found his tastes going in irresponsible directions, and it'll be much easier to brush this off without diplomatic incident if there's room for Coran to politely ignore the less platonic options.

Obi-Wan hopes he doesn't.

It's very selfish of him, but a dalliance with an older gentleman... well. He does, perhaps, make such irresponsible decisions, even now.

"I do believe I'd enjoy such a thing!" Coran enthuses, grabbing Obi-Wan's hand and shaking it in large, effusive movements.

Oh, this is a terrible idea, Obi-Wan thinks, even as he exchanges comm numbers and says goodbye.

Still.

He likes the idea of having at least a little fun, sedate or less so, while they have some time to themselves.

#Obi Wan Kenobi #Coran Smythe #Coran #coran hieronymus wimbleton smythe #anakin skywalker #Star Wars #Voltron #crossovers #Phoenix Posts #Phoenix Answers Asks #parenting

[goldrogerstits]

How to edit and color manga-caps

This is a tutorial on how I personally color and edit manga caps in photoshop. I’ve done my best to explain my editing and coloring process but English isn’t my native language so please excuse any grammatical errors! Anyway, let’s get started💛

Clean-up

First of all you need a clean manga cap to work with. Start by erasing the parts of the image that you don’t want to keep and redraw parts if necessary. In this case I erased the speech bubble and redrew parts of the sparkles surrounding Komurasaki. Try to stay consistent with the artists original style If you redraw parts of the image as it will be very noticeable if you’ve strayed too far from the original style. I recommend that you study the line width especially and try to emulate that! 

Then level the image as seen in this tutorial by @aldiwali​, by leveling the image you erase some of those grainy dots surrounding the line-art. I’ve also found that it helps darken the line art! When you are done with clean-up separate the line art from the background. I’ve already made an in-depth tutorial how to do that (and erase more of those grainy dots) so I’ll link that here: X. 

Once you’ve cleaned your manga cap and separated the line art from the background you can start putting down your base colors and flats!

Coloring process 

Start with a simple base color for the skin, I usually go for #9e7e7d as that will give the skin a nice warm tone once your done! Then make a copy of your base layer. Go to your copy of your base layer, right click and create clipping mask and color it with something more akin to an actual skin tone. Combine the clipping mask and the copy of your base layer, then lower the opacity to your liking, I usually go for around 85% opacity. 

This step is very unnecessary and you don’t need to actually do this (just a normal skin-tone as a base) but I do it out of habit. If you look at some of my older stuff it’s way more noticeable (see example down below). 

If you use this method please be aware of that it does tend to lighten colors so I don’t recommend that you use this method for when you’re using darker colors. 

BONUS TIP for when you’re coloring: Make a color palette! I try to keep track of what colors I use for different characters but it’s easy to get a bit lost so I actually made a little color palette as a reference for myself. That way I can easily keep track of what colors I like to use for a base and for shading. 

Anyways.... back to the actual tutorial! Time to color the rest of the image! Try to get some good reference pictures of the character/characters (preferably something that was colored by the actual artist) if you’re going for canon colors. I usually play around with hues for a bit before I’m happy with results! For example I gave Komurasakis red dress more of a purple/pink undertone to make it work better with her fan and the flowers in her hair. 

Try to divide your colors into different layers to make the shading process easier but don’t make to many separate layers as that can get a bit confusing! I try to divide my layer based on color and placement! 

If you’re not using a reference for what colors you’re going to use I recommend that you at least follow a color scheme. Try to find colors that work with each other but still contrast each other. A lot of people will be looking at your graphics trough their phone and a lot of details will be lost so by making your colors contrast each other you keep some of clarity! I’m not saying that you shouldn’t use colors that are very similar but you should keep the format which your graphics will be looked at in mind. 

Anyways now that we’ve colored everything we need to add color to the parts of the line-art that aren’t supposed be black, in this case we need to add color to the hair, lips, fan and dress. Go to your line-art layer, right click, make a clipping mask and then you can color the line-art. Your layers should look similar to this:

Make a base which you can work off later as seen below.

I usually color everything first and then I refine the outlines with the help of the eraser. Try to keep the width of the outline consistent with the rest of the line-art, otherwise it won’t be as seamless. (I did’t outline her hairline as it’s very “feathered” and I wanted to keep that feeling, but I usually outline the hairline too)

You don’t have to separate each color into its own clipping mask as that isn’t going to make any difference when you shade everything later. Now time to add the line-art to the hair! 

Line-art

I do recommend using some sort of drawing tablet to make your new line-art. It’s not that isn’t possible to do it without one but it’s a bit tedious to it with a mouse or touchpad.

If you use a drawing tablet use a brush that allows you to control the stroke weight of the brush. I usually go for one of the default brushes but I’m sure that there are a tons of fun brushes out there to play with!

Create another layer just above your manga-cap, this is where we’ll draw the new line-art! Try to follow the “flow” of the original line-art. In this case it’s fairly easy for me to see where line-art would fit naturally thanks to the way Oda choose to illustrate the “shine” on Komurasakis hair! 

Look at the area that I’ve encircled, it’s easy to imagine that that’s where Oda would have chosen to add the line-art if he hadn’t colored the hair black. If you can’t find any of these spots try to find a few references for how the original artist does the line-art when it’s in full color. For example I used the cover of volume 92 to get a feeling of how I wanted my line-art to look. 

Basically try to find what makes the original artists line-art distinct and copy that for your own line-art! 

After I’m done with my line-art I go back to the black base and fill in some of the empty spaces that were left by the artist for clarity. Like the gap between the line-art and the deep purple parts of the her fan. When your happy with your base and line-art you can start shading! 

Shading

(Before I start shading I generally color in all the stuff I left out like her eyes, makeup and the shine on her hair. I also decided to outline her eyebrows.)

Let’s start with shading the flats! Add a clipping mask to your layer and set the layer style to multiply. The amount of layers I use differ from color to color but I tend to stick between two our four layers of shading. When you’re shading use a color that is soft but with enough contrast to your base so it doesn’t blend into it. I generally use a color with a warmer tone to shade but the you can play around with colors and tones to add different effects. 

Create a clipping mask and set the layer style to overlay or soft light to highlight certain areas with a lighter color. I tend to play around a bit with the opacity before I’m happy the results. When you’re finished with shading the flats you can start shading the base! 

It’s basically the same thought process as before, just add a clipping mask your base layer and set to multiply! Your layers should look like this: 

And that’s it! We’ve shaded everything and we’re basically done! There’s just a few more minor things to do. 

Details / Coloring the line-art 

I like coloring the line-art as it gives the graphic some extra color. To add color to your line-art just do as we did before. Make a clipping mask and color the lines, simple as that! Try to use colors that are dark enough that the line-art isn’t lost. 

I did some finale clean-up, colored the sparkles surrounding Komurasaki, added som motion filters to that, fixed the background and that’s that! We’re done! That’s how I edit and color manga-caps! I hope this helps! I might have gotten lost on a few tangents so please feel free to ask questions if you need clarification on anything💛

#gahhhh I hope I spelled everything right #anyways I hope you guys enjoy this #this isnt the only way to color #and edit manga caps its just the way I do it!!! and im not a professional or anything I simply do this because it's fun! #tutorial #coloring tutorial #coloring #manga coloring #manga #one piece #op #shonen jump #opgraphics

[scorpio-karma]

I seen people hate on season 6 Tyler because he got Damon and Elena out of the prison world when they were rescuing Bonnie however I honestly think Tyler was more smarter than Damon and Elena Kai was about to kill Liv And he drained most of her magic and if she dies Damon and Elena are stuck forever and if they hid the ascendant they could have tried again in the next few days also what were elena and Damon doing at the prison world anyway talking about their relationship , sitting in Elena's house they never tried to meet bonnie halfway

Honestly I would have loved to see an episode where liv sends Tyler to save bonnie because Damon And Elena were useless and then once bonnie meets Damon she beats the shit out of him and once kai tries to kill them or something Bonnie leaves Damon alone and kai tortures him and elena for quite awhile

ahh the perfect tvd episode

For me personally I don't like Tyler in that episode, not really because of his actions but because of his complete disregard for Bonnie. She did all the hard work literally to get him back and Liv got all the credit for saving him???? And then there's Liv herself who i have issues with in general but the fact that she has to be reminded what Bonnie did for her to even be motivated to help irks me a lot.

As for actions, Tyler was the most logical but for me again where I'm most fed up with him is that there is no attempt to find another way to get Bonnie back. He seems completely content with the idea of letting Bonnie rot on the Prison world.

As for least productive that goes to Damon and Elena who just sat around when they could have been meeting her halfway. I personally blame Elena more there simply because her presence was unnecessary. This was around where I was really realizing how useless of a character she was because they were just tacking her on to storylines because she was the main character and not because she actually belonged there. I feel the same about the episode where Kai kidnapped her and when they go to the 1903 PW. Things just run much more smoothly when she's not around and that's because she only functions to hinder the plot. There's much more interesting storylines around her but you're stuck with Elena through most of it and miss some great opportunities, which is why I wasn't bothered at all with Nina leaving. Elena had no place on the show by then and I wish they realized that and had just killed her off because she became the most annoying part of season 7 and 8!

Anyway, in another universe, where the writers aren't racist and both Tyler and Liv realized who they owe their lives to that plotline would have been perfect. However I think it would be more in character for her to be happy to see Damon a)because I actually liked Bamom that season (just liked bonkai more) and b) as shown by her abandonment issues it's very consistent for her to attach to anybody she's been with for an extended time. The thing to break that to me is the same thing that broke her trust in him the first time and that was bringing Kai to her, completely disregarding her own trauma in favor of his own personal agenda which makes for a powerful scene I wish she had more of.

I'd be more inclined to replace the episode where Kai kidnapped Elena with one where he kidnaps Bonnie, obviously less torture, but they do have a moment about what to do when you have that much power in you, and he calls her plucky again because she escapes death so often. I'd like to start their journey into twisted romance there where she goes full Stockholm syndrome (but the real version) where she realizes she more safe with him her captor, than the MFG her rescuers. I don't exactly know where I'd go from there but I do knowni would like Bonnie and Tyler to be closer friends during that time. (I am a tonnie shipper but I love to brotp them in bk fics) Like he's the one to tell what a dangerous line she's toeing with but she lashes out at him with some facts about his neglect of her. I always have the HC that Tyler and Bonnie were each other's first times, so I would like to bring up the fact that he'll only be with a witch of she is white (a plec symptom). Obviously not true, but a good place for introspection on Tyler's part which has always been his greatest strength as a character. He knows how to look at his flaws and actually put in the work to change them and I think probing a symptom of living in the south, and on a former plantation at that would be best left with him. Instead of a whole host of excuses like "that's just how I was raised" and "that was the time back then" he would actually active try to change things. Maybe get his direction back and continue the Lockwood legacy as mayor but with the same conviction of not being like his father.

Anyway that was a weird tangent, NY conclusion is essentially that had Bonnie gotten back sooner when she was supposed to season 6 wouldn't have sucked toward the end and the needless torture of a black woman should have stopped not just due to the fact that it's racist, but it also improves the story. I swear, she hindered so much of that show just to be racist towards Bonnie and Tyler and apparently has the nerve to talk about the flaws in their storylines as though she didn't write it???? Bitch, get out of here with that nonsense, or better yet get fired because you clearly shouldn't be anywhere near a writers room.

#Bonkai #tyler lockwood #liv parker #anti parkwood #because they represent Bonnie erasure

[xiaomomowrites]

act IV

Genshin Impact | TartaLi/ZhongChi

Summary: It was the way Zhongli’s warm amber eyes suddenly were not as warm anymore. The way he looked at him with a piercing look, void of remorse, as he handed his gnosis over willingly to go on a whole tangent about how his “duties were done”. It was the way he turned and treated the precious traveler with the same amount of kindness and gentleness the Childe had received the previous night, with such ease; it was a look he thought was reserved only for him. It was the way he was able to turn back around, stare at Childe with an unreadable gaze, and walk away without so much of a goodbye.

Or, Zhongli and Childe finally have the conversation that was long overdue.

A/N: I’ve been playing genshin for roughly four or five months now, I can’t remember exactly when I started, but boy do I love it. No you don’t understand, I’m obsessed. But these two have been taking up room in my big brain, so I wanted to write for them. It’s been awhile since I wrote for pleasure so hopefully this is satisfactory :,) and tomorrow, I’m back to school, so I thought I’d enjoy my last day of freedom and post this today. Fun fact, I’m minoring in professional writing, so I’m hoping that it’ll improve my writing skills when I write for luxury, too. Anyway, this was a really fun piece for me to write and I hope you share the sentiment.

Also thank you guys for being so patient with our inactivity and just being such a chill audience to write for. Other social media platforms have become so...demanding haha. I appreciate y’all! Feel free to message us or talk to us about whatever :) -u.n.

Find this on AO3!

Spoiler alert: this fic does contain spoilers for the A New Star Approaches arc, so read at your own risk.

—

In Childe’s line of work, he is no stranger to betrayal.

Working as a Fatui Harbinger meant an unhealthy amount of fighting, betraying one person, deceiving another, and then on occasion, getting betrayed himself. It was all in a days’ work. Childe knew he would just have to roll out his neck and move on. He’s done it before, he can do it again. He would think that, after nineteen years of this grueling rinse and repeat, that he’d be able to tolerate a lot in the field. In fact, working with that wretched colleague of his, Scaramouche, and serving the Tsaritsa with a loyalty unmatched explicitly calls for the patience and tolerance of a saint.

Alas, Childe is the furthest thing from a saint. And still, Zhongli’s betrayal stung the most out of anyone else’s, the reason still unbeknownst to him. He tells himself that it’s because he had actually befriended the other man. That, unlike his other missions, he developed more of a friendship with Zhongli than he has with anyone else in the past. Not to mention how he really thought he’d find the gnosis, in all its golden glory, seated deep within the Exuvia, and not within his friend.

Which is why after he watches Zhongli hand over his precious gnosis to Signora of all people, Childe makes haste to return to the inn he had been staying at to furiously pack his things and leave first thing in the morning. Seeing Signora in Liyue so close to Zhongli had triggered a deep seated feeling of possessiveness over him and the city. Liyue was his territory, as far as he was concerned. It was assigned to him by the Tsaritsa and no one else. And yet, despite his unspoken possession over Liyue, its people turned against him and viewed him as the enemy. As if Childe didn’t already know that. As if he hadn’t already grown up with a layered villain complex, subconsciously looking for a fool with a hero complex to match him. Then entered Zhongli, making himself at home in Childe’s life, and he was immediately enamouring the Harbinger.

Screw Liyue.

Screw all their traditions, the stupid glaze lilies, the delicious cuisine, the obvious livelihood that fills the streets in stark contrast to his own icy hometown, screw all those goddamn unnecessary mountains, that fish market with that abhorrent smell he gradually got used to, and screw Rex Lapis. Screw Zhongli, that handsome bastard, for stringing him along like his plaything the entire time.

Childe knows, he gets it, that Zhongli simply did what he had to do because it was best for his people. And what other way for the oldest of the seven to go, if not for a grand finale? And yes, Childe admits, luring out Osial was a stupid move, but it certainly served its purpose for testing the strength of Liyue and its defenders.

Zhongli and Signora knew he would do something stupid and reckless as soon as he caught wind of the Exuvia serving as a decoy. They knew, and they played the game so well, that Childe really thought he was the mastermind puppeteering the whole show.

What a fool he was made out to be.

Childe aggressively shoves blazer after blazer into his travel duffel, angry, pathetic tears pooling at the corners of his eyes without his consent. He sniffs angrily and swipes at his cheek as soon as the first tear falls.

Fuck this, he’s not crying over a god, he still has some dignity.

But still. Pride aside, it hurt. And it wasn’t even necessarily the deceit that hurt the most. He’s dealt with that previously. It was… more personal. More of an internal struggle than an external issue. Childe truly hates those the most. At least he can shove his fist through any external problem, but he can’t exactly do the same with his feelings, or whatever they’re called.

It was the way Zhongli’s warm amber eyes suddenly were not as warm anymore. The way he looked at him with a piercing look, void of remorse, as he handed his gnosis over willingly to go on a whole spiel about how his “duties were done”. It was the way he turned and treated the precious traveler with the same amount of kindness and gentleness the Childe had received the previous night, with such ease; it was a look he thought was reserved only for him. It was the way he was able to turn back around, stare at Childe with an unreadable gaze, and walk away without so much of a goodbye.

The same eyes that gazed at him with such affection and kindness were suddenly replaced with the eyes of a soldier. And it was only then that Childe fully realized the force he was reckoning with. Zhongli was a withered god who lived too long for his own good. A powerful deity that held the ability to shake the ground with a look; he who had been humbled by time and his sharp edges eroded by the millions of faces that passed him. Simply put, Childe was just another one of those faces. And again, he understood. If he lived for six thousand years, he wouldn’t want to be alive after the first hundred.

It was the duality that dug the blade deeper into his already bleeding chest. He felt used.

“I’ve enjoyed the time we’ve spent together, Childe,” Zhongli had said to him on a warm Liyuen night, “a friend of mine, a long time ago, told me that I was… bad at connecting with people. Emotionally stunted, is what she called me. And she is correct, as I have definitely struggled with making connections in the past. But with you… it’s different. It’s easy.

Childe is thankful for the discretion that night provides him; Zhongli would have easily spotted the blush spreading across his pale cheeks had it been daytime.

“So you had trouble making a couple friends, so what?” The ginger shrugs, “I wasn’t the best at making friends, either. My mom always said I was too aggressive. Apparently that’s not such an appealing trait, after all.”

Zhongli chuckles, a beautiful sound. “It was a bit deeper than that, I’m afraid. Understanding the complexity of another’s emotions was always difficult for me, whereas she… she was loved by everyone. Adored by the youngest of fawns to the oldest of horses. It came so naturally to her. I was the opposite. Not that everyone hated me, no, people just had a harder time getting close to me. Which is why, upon meeting you, I was shocked to find that we clicked so well. Befriending you was as easy as breathing air.”

Oh, Archons, help him.

“And,” Zhongli continues, as if he hadn’t already wrecked the man six ways to hell and back, “I must sincerely thank you for indulging me once again.” The deity glances down at the bag full of antique trinkets in his lap. Childe’s lips turn upward into one of his more genuine, rare smiles.

“What’s with you tonight?” Childe responds, and Zhongli looks at him questioningly , “I mean, you never had a problem with me spoiling you rotten before. You’ve never even acknowledged it. Why start now?”

Zhongli tears his gaze away from the Harbinger.

“And,” the ginger continues, “it almost sounds like you’re saying goodbye.”

Zhongli smiles at him then. He wore a kind look on his face, eyes so impossibly warm that it reminded him of his grandmother’s pirozhki. Hot and steaming from the center, melting on his tongue, dissolving deliciously in his mouth and defrosting his entire body. His smile felt like it wrapped itself around his chest and squeezed the best way possible, fitting him back together in places Childe didn’t even realize he had broken.

“What makes you say that?”

Oh, Childe is pissed.

Fuck tomorrow morning, Childe is leaving tonight.

The memories of last night crash over him not unlike a tidal wave and suddenly, he’s drowning. Filled out the brim with a familiar rage burning through his chest and searing his finger tips, his legs, his fucking toes.

He stands abruptly when he realizes he’s been sitting and resumes his packing. It doesn’t take very long after that. A couple toiletries get shoved into the side pockets, his vision is hooked back onto his hip, and his mask is slid into its’ usual spot on his head. He looks at himself in the mirror on the way out and scowls at the way his hair looks more disheveled than usual. Red rims his dulled blue eyes, forcing him to accept that maybe he cried more than he’d like to admit. Whatever.

He swings the door open and-

“Childe,” lo and behold, Zhongli stands in his fucking doorway, “I’d like to talk to you, if that’s alright.” The man looks slightly disheveled. He’s a little out of breath, Childe notices, like he ran up those ridiculous flights of stairs to get to his room- which, by the way, he never disclosed that information with him.

The man in question huffs a laugh. “It’s not.”

He makes a move to brush past him, but is stopped by an unreasonably strong grip around his bicep.

“Tartaglia,” he pleads, “please.”

Childe snatches his arm back and spits, “don’t call me that.”

He retreats back into his room anyway, hearing Zhongli close the door behind him. He dumps the bag back onto his bed and curses himself for not leaving a millisecond earlier.

“You’re angry with me.” Zhongli starts, face as unreadable as ever.

“The sky is blue. Snezhnaya is cold. Are we still stating the obvious here?” He’s too angry to carefully choose his words. Too hurt to slip on his pleasant facade.

“Tartaglia,” he presses, and Childe really hates how his name sounds on his tongue, “I truly am sorry for the way things had to go. It was not in my intentions to… hurt you to the degree in which you feel. I simply was upholding the end of my contract and doing what was best for my people. I implore you to believe that making you feel used was not my main objective.“

Oh god, his apology sounds so robotic.

“So you’re aware that what you did was a little fucked up.”

“Yes.”

“And you’re aware that almost the entirety of Liyue places the blame on me.”

“Yes.”

Well, shit. “Good talk, Zhongli-xiansheng. If you’ll excuse me, I must begin my trip home.”

He stomps toward the door only to be stopped once again. Archons, if Childe had any motivation left, he most certainly would challenge him to a spar. The ginger huffs, and looks to the heavens in a silent plea for patience.

“Tartaglia, please, I’m not finished-“

“Yeah, well I am.” Their eyes lock. Blue meets gold in a hostile hold, refusing to break. “The second you handed your gnosis over, my business here was done. Whatever… relationship we had is done. You were my consultant and was a Harbinger here for business. A Harbinger that you obviously used for your disposal. So now that that’s over and done with, I really need to report to Tsaritsa, lest she have my head on a silver platter-“

“I spoke with Tsaritsa already.” Zhongli cuts in, his grip tightening around Childe’s wrist. “I asked her for more time with you.”

“You what.”

“Surely you are curious about the deal I struck with Tsaritsa. The contract to end all contracts, yes?” Childe’s wild look on his face eggs him to continue, “I struck a deal that granted you more time here in Liyue. With me.”

Childe is silent for a moment. The ex-Archon opens his mouth to continue.

“And I’d like to say I’ve known you long enough to know that you seek freedom. From what that may be, I do not know. But Tsaritsa has agreed to give you a choice, at the very least, a temporary one. An extended vacation or complete retirement is a choice to be made by you.” Zhongli finishes, looking to Tartaglia with hope.

“THAT is worth your fucking gnosis?!” Zhongli’s gnosis. The entire essence of his being. The very thing that makes him divine (thought it certainly isn’t the only thing that makes the man ethereal), was traded for him.

“Yes,” Zhongli replies with such ease it makes Childe’s head spin. “Among other things, of course.” An aggressive why is lodged in the back of Childe’s throat. Why me? A million questions swirl around his head, knocking him off balance. He would have swayed on his feet had Zhongli not been there to hold him upright.

“That’s insane. You’re insane. You…” Childe lets out a tired sigh, “I don’t understand you.” And he doesn’t. Because one minute he’s a cold hearted businessman, and the next he’s at his door, reduced to a mortal, begging him to stay. Granting him freedom. Really, what kind of fucked up game is this? Why didn’t anyone tell him he was a part of it?

Zhongli smiles. He smiles. “You remember our conversation from the night before, yes?”

Childe rolls his ever-blue eyes to the back of his head. “Remind me, Zhongli-sensei,”

“I said,” the deity starts, drawing both of Childe’s calloused hands between his own, “that I struggled to connect with others. Guizhong, the Goddess of Dust, was the one to bring to my attention my emotional constipation. And like I said, she was correct.”

Childe’s anger withers.

“Unfortunately I understand naught of the depth of your feelings of betrayal,” he continues, “but I do wish to understand how deeply humans feel. And in our time together, I’ve begun to understand through you. Despite your… complexities. And I wish to continue to learn. With you.” I wish to feel human is left unsaid, and laced between his words instead.

“What are you saying,” the Harbinger asks weakly.

“Take me with you.”

“What.”

“Take me with you. Wherever you go, I will follow, if you will allow it.”

Well duh, he’d allow it. Zhongli just had to work for it a little more. He can’t just waltz in here after breaking his heart and ruining his trust, demanding his friendship and companionship or whatever, after everything he was put through-

“Okay.”

Very nice ass to mouth filter, Ajax.

Zhongli’s eyes glow impossibly brighter, “Okay?”

Childe tugs his hands back to his side. “Yes, yes, fine. Whatever. But you can’t just. You can’t just use me again in the name of experimentation.”

“Tartaglia, I would never,” he assures him vehemently, “Of the seven, I was always the one most oblivious to emotions. You may ask Barbatos if you want. But I know that what I feel for you is real and I would not trade it for the world.”

Childe’s mind reels. Barbatos? Feelings?

“‘What you feel for me?’”

Zhongli cocks his head in confusion, as if his feelings were the most obvious thing in the world. “Well, yes. And you feel the same, no? It need not be said aloud.”

“It really doesn’t,” Childe affirms, “you can save me the embarrassment.”

“Wonderful,” Zhongli’s face brightens, and it’s only then that Childe is hit with the full realization that Zhongli is free. No longer is he tied to the city and burdened with the weight of the people. No longer does he have to associate himself with the likes of the Tsaritsa. Finally, after centuries and centuries, he is allowed the pleasure to smile so brightly despite feeling pained for finally leaving his people. He is Zhongli, and no longer Rex Lapis. Morax is long gone, too. The man before him is a man reborn, and Childe’s heart aches with happiness for him.

“Okay, well,” he clears his throat when he notices he’s been quiet for too long, “it’s been a long day and I’m tired. I think I’m just gonna take a shower and turn into bed and think about the rest tomorrow. Save it for future Childe, you know?”

He pads over to his hastily packed back and zips it back open, pulling out the toiletries he aggressively shoved in less than an hour ago. He digs his fingers into his neck and sighs at the release of tension. Summoning an angry ocean god took a lot more out of him than he anticipated.

“I agree,” Zhongli says, and begins to strip. “Personally I prefer the left side of the bed.”

Childe gawks at him.

“You-!” Truly an emotionally constipated god, indeed. He sighs and his shoulders droop, the fight leaving his body. “Fine. Make yourself comfortable. I’ll be out in a bit.”

“I eagerly await your return,” Zhongli comments passively as he slips under the covers, a book he didn’t even know he was carrying tucked under his arm. Childe sighs for the nth time that night and turns to close the bathroom door behind him.

Future Childe certainly has a lot to deal with in the morning.

#genshin impact #genshin impact fan fiction #Tartaglia #Childe #zhongli #tartali #zhongchi #i love them so much it hurts #childe x zhongli #angst #character introspection #when this chapter ended i was incredibly emotional #i just want them to be happy

[lunawings]

Ace (and Leo)’s PriZoom Birthday Party!! 4/4/2021

(Yes it took way too long before someone coined PriZoom... But)

That was.............. 

AMAZINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

Comments on Tatsuyuki Kobayashi’s live appearance at the end

Not to say this showing wasn’t without occasional feedback/unnecessary noise from people who should have been muted, but still, it went a LOT smoother this time. There were only about 170 people but there were supposedly two different rooms (text only and regular cheering) so I don’t know if that was the actual grand total. I did regular cheering of course. I don’t have that much to say in SSS but I like to be a part of the madness. People were really chatty and relaxed this time too! Making shoutouts to the cosplayers and such. Lots of familiar faces from the previous stream!

The staff has even started doing this little thing at the end where they showcase a bunch of different cameras. They didn’t pick mine, thoughhhhh. Actually the only time I was on the main screen was at the very end of the movie. (I think perhaps they have realized they have been inexplicably infiltrated by a gaijin and don’t know how to handle it, as is the Japanese way.) It was the perfect time to realize I... COMPLETELY FORGOT THE 366 LOVE DIARY DANCE FFFFFFNOOOOOOOOO--I have to practice before the next one. It hadn’t occurred to me that we would actually get 366 Love Diary.

So they have mentioned these showings would be the theater edit, and going into it I was really curious like... would it really be the theater edit? Like the completely original version with 366 Love Diary and everything? Or did they just splice the DVD into the theater cut? But I think it really WAS the theatrical version. I won’t know unless I see Part 3 or Part 4 though, because those had some pretty significant differences between the theatrical version and the TV version. (A really noticeable animation error with Leo’s hair in Part 3, Shin’s got a different phone background in Part 4, etc...) Nnnrrrgh I don’t really want to see Part 4 but I might have to... NOT today though. I made the difficult decision to only do Part 2 today. (I miss disposable income....) But hopefully I can do Part 1 in May for Taiga and Part 3 in June for Alexander?

I’ve always considered Part 1 and Part 3 to be my favorites, so I always forget how much I do like Part 2: BABY KAKERU, Joji dragging the Shuffle on his date, JOJI! HAIR!!!!, ACE, Orange Flamingo, Joker Kiss, sssAAAILInGGGGGGGGGGG... (even on ZOOM I got the full body goosebumps when Minato looked up). 

Some notable stuff:

People yelling in Okayama-ben during the Joji flashback (そうじゃ、そうじゃ！instead of そうだ、そうだ！etc) I was DYINGGGG

When Ace’s mic is cut: “Is there a problem with Zoom??” “TAKE JOJI OFF MUTE!!”

Several people prepared fish for particular scenes in episode 4 and 6.

I think my favorite feed was the person who aimed their camera back at the screen with their Torachi and Dorachi plushies watching.

Or maybe just the person who had up the background of the Ikebukuro Train Station the whole time (PPPPFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFT)

Someone had up the ferris wheel in Shizuoka where the Kouji scene takes place too though!! AAAAHAAAAA!!! (Going there is seriously one of my favorite King of Prism memories of all time.)

Additional shoutouts to:

The Hiro cosplayer who was eating curry during episode 6.

The girl in the orange happi with “From the cradle to the grave” actually framed on her wall (possibly in real calligraphy!?)

The Tsubasa fangirl (!!??!) who held up a Tsubasa fan whenever she was on screen

The person with the Ace plushie (!!). I didn’t know they existed. He had his hat from the Joker Kiss performance too. 

There was at least one Leo cosplayer but there were SEVERAL Ace cosplayers. Like WOW. Also shoutout to the person who cosplayed as an actual Ace of Hearts card omg I love this fandom so much. 

But really though there was SO. MUCH. ACE. LOVE in this showing. So many Ace backgrounds/homemade Ace cheering goods, etc. I know this was specifically the Ace birthday showing but still. Considering Ace isn’t exactly a main character I think this was pretty huge. 

And now onto what you were possibly all waiting for, the Tatsuyuki Kobayashi greeting! This was basically almost exactly what it felt like to go to a theater greeting show in Japan, just on Zoom. I used to always talk about trying to see the voice actors at smaller events to try and get them to notice me and this was... basically THAT. Almost better in a way!? Because he could see all of us equally? Read all of our comments on the screen!!! Of course I had no idea what to say when presented with this opportunity....... GAHHH HE’S SO FREAKIN CUTE 

We started off by singing Happy Birthday to Ace and Leo (actually just him because we were on mute!), and then we all blew out the candles on a cake together. He mentioned him and the staff would eat the cake later haha. 

He then started to talk about his experience playing Ace. He mentioned that when he first sang Love Mix for Pride the Hero, his character didn’t even have a name yet. He was simply the ghost singer.  And when he came out and made that surprise performance at the MRS concert he was so nervous he barely remembered it!! But when he got to perform again as Ace at the SSS live in Feb 2020, now that Ace had come into his own, he was much more confident and it was very meaningful to him. 

This really resonated with me. I’ve actually seen Tatsuyuki Kobayashi in concert a total of three times. The first time was at MRS during that surprise performance. It was an amazing surprise, but at that time I only saw him as Joji even though I knew he wasn’t. (And I wasn’t even all that attached to Joji back then because he was such a minor character at the time.) The second time I saw him was as Asahi at a Pretty Series show, where I was waaaaaay at the back and didn’t really get to see him that well, so I didn’t really get a proper chance to appreciate his performance. But when I saw him as Ace at the SSS live... THAT was when I fell in love with him (and HOW). Because really, he did just seem SO CONFIDENT and like he was enjoying it so much and finally seeing him perform as Ace for real was really meaningful. 

Sorry for the tangent, but yeah. He talked about how moved he was by how many of us had come to cheer on Ace today with backgrounds, props, cosplay, etc. And he credited all of us cheering him on for him making it this far, for finally becoming the leader of the Shuffle! AWWWWWWRGH! I’m SO HAPPY for him AHH he deserves everything and moreeeeeeeee this was so nice

#king of prism #ace ikebukuro